Yongju-Chongju Gap

The Yongju-Chongju Gap (26 July-6 August 1950) was a battle of the Korean War. It took place when the US Eighth Army launched an offensive against North Korean forces that had advanced in between Yongju and Chongju, forming an indent in the Pusan Perimeter line. After three days of heavy combat, North Korean forces in the gap were decimated.

Battle
The United States and South Korea had to hold the Pusan Perimeter as North Korea overran much of the South at the start of the Korean War, with the North Koreans being numerically superior. The Americans had previously won a victory at the battle of Kumi and had thrown back some North Korean forces, but the North Korean forces in the east of the peninsula captured Taejon. At the same time, the Americans decided to launch a major offensive against a large concentration of North Korean troops that had halted their advance between Yongju and Chongju, forming a gap. The Americans launched a strong assault against the North Koreans with several armored divisions, and the North Korean armor was crunched up by the stronger American tanks. By 27 July, Yongju was in US hands, and the gap was pushed to the area between Chongju and Chech'on to the northwest. On 29 July, Americans pushed to the northwest of Chongju and engaged larger North Korean forces, and on 30 July an American armored division secured Chech'on and Wonju. North Korea deployed the majority of its forces to react to the American campaign, allowing for a counterattack at the Battle of Chonju that turned the tide of the campaign. By 6 August, the front lines at Taejon and Chongju had been united, ending the Yongju-Chongju Gap campaign.